Hawaii lawmakers pass bill raising smoking age to 21

HONOLULU, April 24 (Reuters) - Hawaii lawmakers on Friday
passed a bill that would raise the legal smoking age statewide
to 21, positioning it to become the first state in the country
to do so.

The bill, which passed the state Senate by a vote of 19-4
after clearing the house last week, would also ban the sale,
purchase or use of electronic cigarettes for those under the age
of 21.

"The activities we've engaged in over the years to manage
smoking, our additional efforts in education, the raising of
cigarette taxes, this is a continuation of those policies,"
Democratic state Senator Rosalyn Baker, one of the bill's
sponsors, told Reuters.

She said opponents of the measure have argued that it limits
choice for people considered adults in other situations, like
joining the military, but added: "To me, giving someone the
choice to have lung cancer is not a good choice."

Governor David Ige will have to approve the measure. Ide
spokeswoman Jodi Leong said he would make a decision only after
reviewing the bill, which would likely happen next week.

Most U.S. states set the legal smoking age at 18, while a
handful have set it higher at 19. Some cities and counties,
including New York City and Hawaii County, have already raised
the smoking age to 21.

Lawmakers in Washington state and California have also
pushed to raise the legal smoking age to 21 in recent months.

The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids said that tobacco use
kills 1,400 people and costs some $526 million in medical bills
annually in Hawaii. It added that about 95 percent of adult
smokers started before they were 21 years old.

Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death
in the United States, accounting for more than 480,000 deaths
annually, or one of every five deaths overall, according to the
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Researchers have found that raising the minimum age to
purchase tobacco products to 21 or 25 years old would
significantly reduce smoking and tobacco-related illnesses in
the country and that a majority of U.S. adults support raising
the legal age to 21.

Smoking rates in the country have dropped sharply to 18
percent of the population today down from 42 percent in 1964.
(Writing by Curtis Skinner; Editing by Michael Perry)